“That's not how it works. There's no burning fire or witch's brew, at least not usually. The invisibility potion tastes a little funny, but that's it.”
“Invisibility potion?” Kristin said, her eyes lighting up.
“Come on. Let's go meet Martha.”
“Does she even know we're coming?”
“No. And, uh, I don't see her car.”
“Wonderful, Kevin. If we drove hours just to see an empty house, I'm gonna kill you.”
“Let's just go knock on the door, before your hair catches on fire.”
Kristin laughed and gestured to Kevin's backpack as they marched up the sidewalk.
“You always carry that now? Got all your little witch ingredients in there?”
“Not all, but a few.”
“You're serious?”
He only smiled as he knocked on the front door.
No one answered.
Kevin grew hot as the silence stretched. He wished he could shrink into his clothes, and could feel his sister's eyes on him, boring a hole into him.
“Kevin-”
“I know, I know. Death threats.”
He knocked again, and the door opened a few inches on its own.
“Whoa, that's weird,” Kevin said, and opened the door wider. “Hey Martha, are you in here?”
“You're gonna just walk in?”
“Sure. Martha's cool.”
“You said her car wasn't here.”
Kevin stopped as dread crept over him. A missing car and an open door didn't give him a good feeling.
“Martha?” he called again. “It's me, Kevin.”
He pushed the door all the way open to see the living room was ransacked. The couch was cut open and laying on its back, along with every pillow. Every book on the shelf against the wall was on the floor, most of them destroyed.
“Oh my God,” Kristin whispered behind him. “What happened in here?”
“I don't know.”
“Why don't you know? Aren't you both witches?”
“That doesn't mean I'm CSI, Kristin.”
“Oh, sorry.”
“Martha?” Kevin said, his voice nearly gone. “Sebastian?”
“Who's Sebastian?”
“Her cat.”
“Does every witch have a cat?”
“Actually, I think we do.”
Kevin slowly moved through the house, Kristin a step behind him. The terrifying thought went through his mind of finding Martha hurt, or worse.
The kitchen wasn't in as bad a shape as the living room, but it had been searched. Drawers and cupboards were open, silverware scattered on the floor. A few dishes and glasses were broken and scattered about.
“A robbery?” Kristin asked.
“Maybe. I don't know.”
“Look at this.”
Kristin gestured to a calendar on the wall. The word vacation was written with a line drawn through four weeks, including the current Saturday they were visiting.
“Some burglars knew she was on vacation, and robbed her house,” Kristin said.
“You think they were looking for something to steal in the kitchen?”
“I don't know, Kevin. Look, let's just call the cops.”
Kristin opened her mouth to protest as Kevin grabbed the phone on the wall, but was too late.
“Good idea. Let's just put our fingerprints all over the house.”
“The phone's dead.”
“I left my cell phone in the car.”
Kevin and Kristin left the house through the living room. They froze on the front porch.
Three men stood near the car, one with his head inside the passenger's window. Another was on a cell phone, and the third was writing down her license plate number.
“Hey!” Kristin shouted. “What the hell-”
Kevin clamped down on her shoulder to quiet her down.
Something felt very wrong.
“Kristin, be quiet,” he hissed. “Just walk.”
They cut across the yard and kept to the sidewalk. Kevin flashed a smile at the men, trying to look natural, but knowing he failed miserably. He shifted his backpack to one shoulder.
The men talked amongst themselves for a moment before slowly following them.
“Get off me,” Kristin said, shaking free from Kevin's grip, but staying next to him. “What the hell is going on?”
“I don't know. Just something's not right.”
“Well, thank you, genius. I figured that part out. Those are probably the guys that robbed that woman's house.”
“I don't think they're burglars.”
“What the hell are they, then?”
Kevin was too afraid to turn around, but stole a quick glance into the side mirror of a parked truck as they passed. The men were still following them, one of which had his hand inside his coat.
“Oh God, I think that guy has a gun.”
“Are you serious?” Kristin said, turning her head.
“Don't look!”
She snapped her head straight. “What are you doing? Where are we going? Oh no, my cell phone's still in the car.”
Kevin passed by a woman walking her dog, then two men delivering a couch to a home. Should he make a scene, shout for help?
He felt the weight of his backpack. Magic recipes flowed into his mind, but he couldn't bring himself to do anything but walk forward, away from the men.
A couple rounded the corner in front of them, heading toward them. They held hands and laughed as they talked, the man leaning over to kiss the woman on the cheek.
He thought nothing about the scene, until he saw the man reach behind his back.
Kevin grabbed his sister's arm and pulled her down in between a parked Jeep and Civic.
“Kevin! What are you doing?”
He felt silly for a brief moment, until the gunfire started.
The headlight next to Kristin's head exploded. She screamed as she squatted and covered her head, trying to reduce her profile. Kevin took his sister in his arms as they kneeled and held each other. The Jeep in front of them shifted as one of its tires was shot. He was vaguely aware of people running for cover in the streets as more glass and plastic flew around them. He could barely think, but kept expecting to feel pain at any moment as a bullet struck him.
That never happened, and the gunfire stopped.
“Kevin Mishnar,” a male voice called. “We only want you and the book. Your sister is free to go. If you don't give yourself up, we will kill both of you.”
Kevin pulled away from his sister's grasp to see her crying, glass and plastic in her hair. Her hands shook as she held him by the shoulders.
“Book?” she whispered.
He said nothing.
Whoever the people shooting at them were, they knew. They knew of witches, of Kevin and Martha.
Kevin immediately thought of his sister and her safety. He went to stand up, but Kristin pulled him back down.
“Are you crazy?” she said.
“I'm not gonna let them shoot you.”
“You have ten seconds, witch,” the same voice called. “If you don't come out, we'll go find your girlfriend and kill her, too. Everyone you love, dead. It's an easy choice. Don't be a hero.”
Something inside Kevin snapped.
Kristin flinched as his face took on an angry, hateful look.
“Kevin?”
“Enough,” he said, dropping his backpack from his shoulder to the ground. “Everything's worked against us all our lives. Losing our parents, our stupid apartment. I'm sick of it.”
He grabbed a piece of broken plastic and emptied a packet of sugar on it. Kristin watched in amazement as he poured a drop of water on the sugar and made a tiny cut on his finger with a pocket knife.
“What the hell are you doing?” she said.
A single drop of blood fell to the plastic shard. He took a drink of water to heal his cut.
“I'm still waiting, Mishnar!”
Kevin ignored the man, and looked
into his sister's eyes.
“I've fought a werewolf and a vampire, twice, and I'm still here. These are just people. People are nothing.”
“Kevin-”
He pulled away from his sister's grip and stood up. The three men that were following them hid behind a car, guns drawn. The couple ahead of them was nowhere to be seen.
“That's it. Just walk on out, slowly.”
He sneered before tossing the plastic at the men.
The explosion was deafening. The men dove in different directions as the car they hid behind lifted several feet off the ground before landing at an odd angle. They bled from cuts on their faces and arms and struggled to get to their feet.
Kevin turned to grab Kristin's arm, and saw the fake couple ducking behind a truck parked across the street. The woman lay prone on the ground next to a tire, taking careful aim.
His hand shook as he instinctively reached into his backpack. He never had a gun pointed at him before.
Kristin noticed the woman under the truck a moment before she pulled the trigger.
Kevin's hand shook and throbbed in pain as his rock absorbed the force from the bullet. Holding the rock outright, he thought his eyes were playing tricks on him as the bullet floated in midair, then fell to the ground in front of him. He thought his instincts were wrong when they told him the rock would block bullets as well as punches.
He was glad they weren't.
Another car pulled up next to the injured men as the couple opened fire.
Kristin screamed and covered her ears, trying to press herself more into Kevin's side. Every shot fired sent excruciating pain through Kevin's hand, and started to flow into his arm, but every bullet also stopped a few inches in front of Kevin's rock.
Two men jumped out of the car that stopped in the middle of the street. One went to check on the injured while the other took up position near the driver's side door.
“What's going on?”
“The witch is here. The full-blood.”
The driver joined in the shootout, and Kevin felt a bone in his hand break. The magic in his rock was holding up fine. It was the force from the rock to his hand that would do him in.
Crying out in pain, he held on to the rock with both hands as tight as he could. The pain split between both hands, but he didn't know how much longer he could hold on. Bullet after bullet stopped in front of him and fell to the ground.
Kristin finally came to her senses and gripped his shoulder.
“Kevin?”
“Get the flashlight out of my pack.”
She did so, nearly dropping it to the ground twice.
The woman finally had to reload.
Kevin held the rock with one hand while taking the flashlight from Kristin. Several more bones broke as he turned on the beam and aimed it throughout the street.
The firing finally stopped as the shooters had no choice but to cover their eyes. Not even the bystanders hiding in a corner shop were safe, as the light caught their eyes as well.
“Come on,” Kristin said. “We have to go!”
She tried to haul him to his feet as he shoved everything in his backpack. He didn't dare try to move his hand. Kristin pulled harder as she saw their attackers slowly start to look around.
“Dammit, Kevin. Get up!”
The rock slipped from his grasp as he nearly stumbled over the curb, dragging his backpack with his good hand. Kristin led him between two houses.
She cried out and fell against the side of a house as they opened fire once again. Kevin grabbed her hand and pulled her along. Glass flew around them as house windows were shot out. There were screams from inside, and Kevin could only hope the people hiding in their homes were safe.
They sprinted through a backyard into an alley. Kevin didn't risk looking behind them, but could hear voices not far away as their attackers collected themselves.
“What's going on?” Kristin asked as she struggled to keep up with her brother. “What do those people want?”
“I don't know, Kris! To shoot me, maybe?”
“Where are we going?”
“Away from them.”
Kevin stopped and Kristin slammed into him as a car pulled up at the mouth of the alley. The same three men jumped out, not even bothering to close their doors. Kevin and Kristin turned to reverse course, but their pursuers emerged from in between the houses. They were trapped.
Kevin didn't hesitate, running for the closest house next to him with Kristin a step behind. He already had a key in his hand as he pulled open the screen door. Wincing, he ran his broken hand across the door lock, then the dead bolt.
“What are you-”
Kristin didn't have time to finish before Kevin pushed the back door open.
The smell of ground beef touched Kevin's nose as a woman worked over a stove. She turned at the noise, and screamed at the top of her lungs, nearly knocking the pan to the floor.
“Jason!” she called.
“Diane? Are you alright?”
Kevin nearly bumped into Jason as he stepped into the kitchen. He grabbed Kevin by the shoulders and stared at Kristin.
“What the hell is going on here? Who are you?”
Kevin tried to push past the larger man and move through the living room, but his gaze fell on a shelf behind Diane.
A shelf of random herbs and spices.
He stole a quick glance out the back window to see four men and one woman running across the backyard, nearly to the door.
Kevin broke away from Jason and moved toward the spice shelf. Diane ran into Jason's arms as Kristin stood near the archway to the living room.
“Kevin! Come on!”
“I'm calling the police,” Jason said.
“Do that,” Kevin said. “It would be nice to have some damn help.”
Potions and recipes flooded his brain as he looked across the spices. He didn't even know what half the spices were, but that didn't matter. Basil with catnip and lemon juice would cause unbelievable pain. Cayenne pepper with garlic, sugar, and water would cause temporary amnesia.
Panic began to set in. Nothing was coming to Kevin that was useful. Every recipe either needed to be swallowed, or was too destructive.
His eyes finally settled on a salt shaker.
“Kevin!”
“I know, I know. Just hold on.”
He poured some salt into his palm and turned on the sink faucet, trying this best to ignore Jason as he grabbed a phone from the wall. He mixed the salt with a packet of sugar and shoved his hand under the running water.
Diane screamed as the back door burst open. Kevin glanced up to see a man stepping into the kitchen with a gun, several more behind him.
He rubbed his hands together and tossed the sugar and salt in the air.
Everyone began coughing as a thick fog filled the kitchen. Before Kevin lost sight of everything he saw Kristin drop to the ground. He did the same and crawled to where he thought she was. There were shouts of confusion and the sound of someone stumbling and falling.
Kristin shouted as he grabbed her shoulder.
“Hey! It's me.”
“I can't see anything.”
“That's the idea.”
“Was choking the idea too?”
“Shut up and start crawling.”
Someone tripped and hit the floor not far away. They couldn't see anything in front of them, only white fog, but crawled through what they thought was the living room. Kevin smacked his head against a door, and reached up to feel for a knob.
He pulled the door open to see a front yard in front of them. Kristin stumbled past her brother and fell to her knees on the grass. Kevin closed the door and backed away, his eyes still on the house.
Fog leaked under the windows, even on the upstairs floor. There were coughs and shouts still coming from inside. Kristin grabbed her Kevin's arm as he backed up next to her.
“What did you do?”
He glanced around as guilt began to creep in. Jason and Diane would be fi
ne after the magic fog dissipated, but no doubt they were terrified. They were in their own home with a group of people with guns.
Kevin came back to reality as he noticed heads poking out their front doors and people stopping on the street, all watching the fog pour from the house.
“I slowed them down. Let's go.”
He reached for Kristin's hand and pulled her along. Kristin tried to make a left as they made it to the end of the street, but Kevin stopped and tugged on her arm.
“No! This way.”
“Where are you going? The car is this way.”
“We're not going to the car.”
“Why the hell not?”
Kevin said nothing. He went to grab her shoulder. Her face scrunched up and she winced as she pulled away.
Somewhere in their run she had been shot.
“Kristin!”
She looked down at the blood staining her blouse. Touching a finger to her shoulder, her knees shook as she looked at her own blood.
“No, Kris, come on,” Kevin said, catching her before she could fall.
His eyes fell on a shopping center not too far away. There were plenty of people pushing carts in and out of a grocery store.
“Let's go.”
He had to drag her along for a moment, but she quickly started running on her own. Kevin didn't look behind them, but heard a door open, along with coughing and angry shouting.
“They're behind us,” Kristin said.
“I know, I know.”
“Where are we going?”
They weren't far from the side brick wall to the shopping center. Kevin's pack bounced too much on his back for him to reach inside.
“Give me your lipstick.”
“What?”
“Come on, Kris!”
Kristin fished in her purse and handed over her lipstick as they approached the wall. Kevin quickly drew a circle and created a portal. Kristin gasped at the magical doorway, and forgot all about the people chasing them with guns. Kevin almost had to force her inside.
They barely noticed they were in a supply room.
He ran to the only door he saw and pulled, but it was locked. He almost grabbed a key in his pocket, but another idea popped in his mind.
A smile crossed his face as he created another portal, just next to the door. The hallway outside the supply room was empty. Sticking his head through, there were a few offices to the right and what looked like the grocery store itself to the left. A mother pushing a cart passed by and Kevin pulled his head back so he wasn't seen.
A Witch to Live Page 23